I want to build both an HTPC and a NAS box. I've worked with PC components before, but never built anything myself -- this has turned into a daunting task! I had no idea how many choices there were. I've been pondering over this for too long now, so here goes:
HTPC:
Approximate Purchase Date: ASAP
Budget Range: Looking to stay around $600
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Plan to run XBMC, play Blu-ray Discs and DVDs, stream ripped Blu-rays and DVDs from NAS, stream home videos, somewhat future-proof w/ability to play 3D movies, stream from Netflix, nice to be quiet
Parts Not Required: Need everything
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: I'll look at several, but prefer newegg.com and amazon.com (for fuel perks by buying gift cards from the grocery store)
Country: US
Parts Preferences: I always lean towards Intel
Overclocking: Maybe
SLI or Crossfire: Maybe?
Monitor Resolution: 720p TV via HDMI; maybe 1080p in the future
Additional Comments: I've built out the following list from what I've read over the past few weeks; I plan to wire this to a gigabit switch with the NAS that's then uplinked to my router.
SilverStone Aluminum/Steel Micro ATX HTPC Computer Case GD05B (Black) - NewEgg
Thermaltake W0070RUC TR2 Series 430W Power Supply with 2 Fans - Amazon
Intel Core i3-2120 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz LGA 1155 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2000 BX80623I32120 - Amazon
GIGABYTE GA-Z68MA-D2H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - NewEgg
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL7D-4GBXH - NewEgg
MSI N210-MD1G/D3 GeForce 210 1GB 64-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Low Profile Ready Video Card - NewEgg
Crucial 64 GB m4 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s CT064M4SSD2 - NewEgg
LG Black Blu-ray Drive SATA Model UH12LS28 OEM LightScribe Support - OEM - NewEgg
Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64bit (Full) System Builder DVD 1 Pack - Amazon
NAS:
Approximate Purchase Date: ASAP - same time as HTPC
Budget Range: Looking to stay around $400, but hard drive prices are nuts still
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Just home media storage and streaming; holds ISOs and ripped Blu-rays; want to run something that will stream music to iPod and iPad as well (subsonic or iTunes); don't plan on this being the ultimate back-up device for anything
Parts Not Required: Plan to salvage a hard drive for the OS, but need everything else
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: I'll look at several, but prefer newegg.com and amazon.com (for fuel perks by buying gift cards from the grocery store)
Additional Comments: I've built out the following list. I planned to start with 2 - 2TB drives, could start with 1 and wait for prices to go down, but may want up to 4 at some point? Planned either WHS or FreeNAS, but unRAID sounds interesting, too.
(x2) G.SKILL Value 4GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9S-4GBNT - NewEgg
Intel Pentium G620 Sandy Bridge 2.6GHz LGA 1155 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics BX80623G620 - NewEgg
(x2) Western Digital Caviar Green 2 TB Desktop Hard Drive WD20EARX - Amazon
15" LCD Monitor (USED) - Amazon
Windows Home Server 2011 64-bit English 1pk DSP OEM System Builder DVD 10 Client - Amazon
Either -
ASUS USB 3.0 SATA 3Gb/s Intel H61 Mini ITX DDR3 1333 Intel - LGA 1155 Motherboard - P8H61-I <REV 3.0> - Amazon
Fractal Design Array R2 Black Aluminum Mini-ITX Desktop Computer Case 300W SFX PSU Power Supply - NewEgg
Or -
Intel BOXDH67BLB3 LGA 1155 Intel H67 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - Amazon
Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - NewEgg
Thermaltake W0070RUC TR2 Series 430W Power Supply with 2 Fans - Amazon
Any advice on these would be great! Also, do you need to buy cables or do most parts come with cables - it's hard to tell for sure...
Thanks in advance,
Krister
HTPC:
Approximate Purchase Date: ASAP
Budget Range: Looking to stay around $600
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Plan to run XBMC, play Blu-ray Discs and DVDs, stream ripped Blu-rays and DVDs from NAS, stream home videos, somewhat future-proof w/ability to play 3D movies, stream from Netflix, nice to be quiet
Parts Not Required: Need everything
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: I'll look at several, but prefer newegg.com and amazon.com (for fuel perks by buying gift cards from the grocery store)
Country: US
Parts Preferences: I always lean towards Intel
Overclocking: Maybe
SLI or Crossfire: Maybe?
Monitor Resolution: 720p TV via HDMI; maybe 1080p in the future
Additional Comments: I've built out the following list from what I've read over the past few weeks; I plan to wire this to a gigabit switch with the NAS that's then uplinked to my router.
SilverStone Aluminum/Steel Micro ATX HTPC Computer Case GD05B (Black) - NewEgg
Thermaltake W0070RUC TR2 Series 430W Power Supply with 2 Fans - Amazon
Intel Core i3-2120 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz LGA 1155 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2000 BX80623I32120 - Amazon
GIGABYTE GA-Z68MA-D2H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - NewEgg
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL7D-4GBXH - NewEgg
MSI N210-MD1G/D3 GeForce 210 1GB 64-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Low Profile Ready Video Card - NewEgg
Crucial 64 GB m4 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s CT064M4SSD2 - NewEgg
LG Black Blu-ray Drive SATA Model UH12LS28 OEM LightScribe Support - OEM - NewEgg
Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64bit (Full) System Builder DVD 1 Pack - Amazon
NAS:
Approximate Purchase Date: ASAP - same time as HTPC
Budget Range: Looking to stay around $400, but hard drive prices are nuts still
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Just home media storage and streaming; holds ISOs and ripped Blu-rays; want to run something that will stream music to iPod and iPad as well (subsonic or iTunes); don't plan on this being the ultimate back-up device for anything
Parts Not Required: Plan to salvage a hard drive for the OS, but need everything else
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: I'll look at several, but prefer newegg.com and amazon.com (for fuel perks by buying gift cards from the grocery store)
Additional Comments: I've built out the following list. I planned to start with 2 - 2TB drives, could start with 1 and wait for prices to go down, but may want up to 4 at some point? Planned either WHS or FreeNAS, but unRAID sounds interesting, too.
(x2) G.SKILL Value 4GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9S-4GBNT - NewEgg
Intel Pentium G620 Sandy Bridge 2.6GHz LGA 1155 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics BX80623G620 - NewEgg
(x2) Western Digital Caviar Green 2 TB Desktop Hard Drive WD20EARX - Amazon
15" LCD Monitor (USED) - Amazon
Windows Home Server 2011 64-bit English 1pk DSP OEM System Builder DVD 10 Client - Amazon
Either -
ASUS USB 3.0 SATA 3Gb/s Intel H61 Mini ITX DDR3 1333 Intel - LGA 1155 Motherboard - P8H61-I <REV 3.0> - Amazon
Fractal Design Array R2 Black Aluminum Mini-ITX Desktop Computer Case 300W SFX PSU Power Supply - NewEgg
Or -
Intel BOXDH67BLB3 LGA 1155 Intel H67 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - Amazon
Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - NewEgg
Thermaltake W0070RUC TR2 Series 430W Power Supply with 2 Fans - Amazon
Any advice on these would be great! Also, do you need to buy cables or do most parts come with cables - it's hard to tell for sure...
Thanks in advance,
Krister